


small hours of the morning

by CrypticVirago



Series: heart made of glass (mind of stone) [3]
Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Finally, M/M, RK900 is Nines, RK900 is a sweet boy, Relationship progress, Sleep deprived Gavin, for himself and for others, he doesnt sleep and it causes so many problems
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-09-24
Updated: 2018-09-24
Packaged: 2019-07-16 08:48:36
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,515
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16082639
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CrypticVirago/pseuds/CrypticVirago
Summary: Gavin Reed is stubborn. He insists that he has too much work to complete to go home once his shift ends. Too much to do to get an actual night's sleep.This, of course, just results in him falling asleep at his desk.





	small hours of the morning

_When your lonely heart has learned its lesson_

_You'd be his if only he'd call_

_In the wee small hours of the morning_

_That's the time you miss him most of all_

 

* * *

 

 

“How long has it been since you’ve slept?”

The question catches Gavin off-guard, and it’s clear that he hadn’t been expecting Nines to speak. “What does it matter to you?” he replies.

“That isn’t an answer.” He returns Gavin’s pointed glare easily.

“Last night, obviously.” Nines detects an increase in heart rate and blood pressure nearly at the same time. A lie.

“A human body can’t function appropriately without sleep, Detective Reed,” Nines informs, and he twists in his chair to face the man fully. “There’s an increased risk for type 2 diabetes, respiratory diseases and high blood pressure, which you already seem to be suffering from.”

“I don’t need to be fuckin’ lectured by you,” Reed retorts.

“I’m not lecturing you. I only care for your well-being.” At that, Reed snorts, a quiet, “yeah, right” mumbled under his breath. “Detective, I highly recommend that you go home and attempt to get some sleep. Or you can fall asleep at your desk, something I predict you doing.”

“Fuck off,” Reed counters. “I’ve got too much to work on right now to bother with your nagging ass.”

“Detective, I really think you should go home. I’m not sure you can effectively complete your work if –”

“Look,” his partner snaps, and he smacks his hand against the desk. “This isn’t my first late night, and I can do my work just _fuckin_ ’ fine. Now shut. The fuck. Up.”

Nines would rather the detective go somewhere appropriate to rest, but Reed spoke with finality regarding Nines’ insistence that he leave. In Nines’ experience, he knew that it was best to not push his partner too far. The detective is tired, that much is obvious. It’s late evening, just past eleven, and though the detective’s shift had ended hours ago, he’s still here. Gavin maintains that he doesn’t need the rest, but it’s clear that he’s struggling to focus on his work regardless of his insistence that it needs to be done.

Perhaps with some coffee, he would be able to focus. Even if Nines didn’t think the amount of caffeine the detective consumed on a daily basis was healthy, and would much rather he actually sleep instead, Nines understood that the detective’s stubbornness would demand he continue working.

Nines stands up, pushes his chair back in, and makes his way towards the break room. Reed doesn’t inquire as to where he’s going, but Nines can feel his eyes on him the entire way. The average human adult requires 7 or more hours of sleep per a 24 hour period, and restful sleep in crucial to physical and mental wellbeing. The fact that Detective Reed depended on caffeine during the day, as well as the dark circles beneath his eyes, indicated some sort of fatigue. Or did it? Dark circles could be attributed to a number of things. The detective was thirty-six years old, and with age, skin thinned and humans lost collagen needed to retain skin’s elasticity. There was also the factor of genetics, dehydration, or eye strain, all of which can dilate the blood vessels around the eyes.

As Nines brews the detective’s coffee, he wonders which one of this possibilities it could be.

He was away a total of six minutes and fifteen seconds. By the time he returns to Detective Reed’s desk, the man has laid his head on his arms and is sleeping. Not completely asleep, however – his body temperature is just beginning to decrease, and his heart rate is slowing. The coffee is still warm in Nines’ hand, made exactly as the detective preferred. Nines sits the coffee down on the edge of his own desk and returns to his seat, listening to the detective’s even breathing before eventually reaching over to turn off his monitor, leaving him in relative darkness.

Though it was definitely not the most conventional way of getting sleep, it was, however, the most convenient at the time. And the detective was sleeping, and that was all Nines could really hope for. Perhaps a reason for his deplorable attitude was his lack of sleep. Nines could only wonder where it stemmed from. Did he have some sort of undiagnosed sleep disorder, or maybe another medical problem? Or could it be that he was so dedicated towards his job that he spent more hours than he should working on his cases?

Gavin Reed was a hard worker, that much was obvious. He had certainly worked for his position within the DPD, something he was proud of. His dedication and work ethic were something that Nines noticed early on, and something that he found he appreciated. Gavin may be ill-tempered and held his prejudice close to his chest, maybe he was a bit too proud and had too big of an ego, but he was still a good detective.

Nines felt rather lucky to have such a man as his partner.

He monitors his partner’s breathing, heartrate and body temperature through the night. His muscles remain relaxed and his breathing is slow and even. Nines notes with some satisfaction that he doesn’t snore, which easies his worry about the risk of pulmonary hypertension, obstructive sleep apnea, chronic headaches and even furthers daytime fatigue. For the entire four hours and thirty-six minutes that he remains asleep, Reed spends a good amount of time within deep sleep.

This is something that Nines finds he’s quite happy with. The detective’s lack of sleep is not only detrimental to his health, but the effect on his mental state could lead to dangerous errors in judgement and impaired reaction times. What would that lead to in the event of a stake out or if they were to come under fire? It could cost the detective his life.

It’s 3:44 in the morning when the detective’s heart rate and blood pressure increase, indicating his awakening. He stirs and lifts his head suddenly, as though shocked awake. Reed first looks towards his monitor, seeming confused by its deactivated screen, and then sets his gaze on Nines before sitting up fully. “What the fuck,” he mumbles, voice groggy.

“Good morning, detective,” Nines says, more for the irony than for the genuine greeting. “You’ve been asleep for the past four and a half hours. How are you feeling?”

“Not fuckin’ awake,” Reed answers, and he wipes at his face with both of his hands, then he notices the cup of coffee on Nines’ desk. “What, do you drink coffee now or some shit?” he asks, and its entirely ironic.

“No, it was for you,” Nines responds. “That was why I left before you fell asleep, to get you some coffee to help you stay awake.” Reed blinks in what seems like surprise, but before he is able to say anything, Nines stands up. “I’ll return with more in a moment.” He takes the coffee, forgotten on the edge of his desk previously, with him, and dumps it into the trash in the breakroom as he makes more.

It takes less than six minutes, and when Nines returns, Gavin has turned on his monitor again, squinting at its harsh light. Nines considers turning down its brightness himself but forgoes it for setting the coffee down on Gavin’s right side. Great minds think alike, however, because he hears Gavin grumbling about brightness settings, and when a few moments, the harsh light of the screen is reduced.

“Why’re you bothering getting me coffee?” Reed asks, regarding the fresh cup placed near him. He scoffs. "I thought you weren't an AX400." 

“You’re tired,” Nines answers simply. “I know you are too stubborn to go home, especially given the time. You’ll insist that four and a half hours of sleep is enough, so I thought I should compromise by getting you coffee.”

Reed gives thoughtful grunt, but still picks up the coffee after a long moment of consideration. There’s an appreciative noise that he makes in his throat, but Reed says little else. Work continues as usual for a total of nine minutes, and then the detective across from him mumbles a quiet, “Thanks.”

Nines regards his partner, notices, even without the light, that there is an embarrassed flush to Reed’s face. “What was that, detective?” he asks, even if he heard it perfectly fine.

“I said ‘thanks’,” Reed says again, quicker and a bit more frustrated this time. “For the coffee. Or whatever.” Nines attempts to contain his smug grin. Despite the embarrassment, his partner sounds genuine in his appreciation.

“You’re welcome, detective,” Nines returns, and then adds, “I would much rather prefer it if you were to go home and rest, however.”

“Yeah, well… who said it mattered what you fuckin’ ‘preferred’?” the detective sneers, and that sounds much more like the partner that Nines has come to know, even if he knows it’s only a deflection. Gavin Reed has a rather hard time being emotionally honest.

“Of course, detective.”

**Author's Note:**

> Work title from "In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning" by Carly Simon.


End file.
